The Infamous Bermuda Love Triangle
by hanaalulu112
Summary: What if Lucas hadn't agreed to ask Rachel out? Starts in 3x05 when Brooke tells Lucas to hold up his end of the non exclusive deal. Brucas and Leyton.
1. Chapter 1

"Look, Brooke, I'm not asking her out on a date" I insisted, despite the smirk the red head was giving me over her shoulder. "I'm not doing this anymore. I don't want you dating other guys, and I sure as hell don't want to be dating other girls" I finished will all seriousness. I was so sick of this non exclusive shit Brooke wouldn't give up on.

"You say that now" Brooke stated, before spinning around to walk away. I grabbed her arm and spun her back towards me. The look on her face showed that she was nothing short of pissed off, and I knew that I, once again, was the cause of it.

"Brooke! How many times do I have to apologize before you understand that I only want you!?" I exclaimed, becoming angered myself. Peyton and I were over and done with. That was that. Peyton knows that, I know that, and I just don't understand why Brooke doesn't. Her facial expression hardened as her eyes bore into mine.

"I don't know, Lucas. I really don't. All I know is that after you kissed me I spent three months wondering if you were off somewhere making out with my best friend" she admitted, her composure falling further apart by the second.

"Brooke! Seriously?! That's not fair" I insisted, my tone get louder and angrier. I didn't even realize that my hand was still on her arm until she jerked it away, tears forming in her eyes, breaking through my angriness.

"You know what's not fair, Lucas? The fact that you hurt me, and now you are begging me to forget and forgive. It's not fair to me! You can't expect you and me to go back to the way we were before you hooked up with Peyton. You made a choice, and you have to live with it. This isn't my fault, and I'm sure as hell not going to let you tell me my reaction is unfair. If you really love me, you would keep fighting for me" She yelled, before shooting me the deadliest look I'd ever seen from her and stomping away. That's Brooke Davis for you. Before I could even process what had just happened, miss Peyton Sawyer herself appeared at my side.

"What's wrong with her?" Peyton asked, motioning towards Brooke's angered figure that was disappearing into the distance. I shook my head, twisting words around as I tried to figure out how on Earth to reply to that question.

"No idea. It started out as me telling her I want to be with her, and ended with her yelling at me and storming away" I explained, scrunching my face in a confused manner. How do things always seem to fall face first when it comes to Brooke and me? "This whole situation, it just sucks, you know Pey? I love her" I admitted. Peyton bit her lip and nodded. She touched my hand lightly.

"It'll be fine, Luke. She'll come around" She told me, squeezing my hand once before letting go and walking away. Things with Brooke are tough. They always have been, and I can't help but think that they always will be. I groaned once more before heading off to class.

Brooke Davis is a force to be reckoned with. She hadn't spoke one word to me all day; hasn't even looked in my direction. Even Nathan made a remark about it, awkwardly I may add, during lunch. It caused Brooke to scoff, mumble something incomprehensible under her breath, grab a startled Peyton off the chair next to her and storm off. I sighed recalling the event as I pulled up to Peyton's house. I needed some advice. Swallowing my pride, I walked through her door and up the stairs towards her room. Peyton was sitting on her bed, focused intently on her artwork. Luckily, Brooke was nowhere in sight. I knocked lightly on the side of her door to hopefully break up her concentration. She jumped up, slightly startled.

"Oh, hey Luke! What's up?" She asked, and it made me laugh to myself. I couldn't help but feel bad; Peyton seems to always be who everyone goes to.

"Hey Peyton. I just thought I'd stop by because I kind of need some advice about something" I explained, hoping she'd get the hint. She smiled knowingly and put her sketchbook down, patting the bed next to her.

"It's Brooke, isn't it? Come here" She motioned, and I complied. That's what I love about Peyton; she's always willing to help, no matter how much people ask. I walked towards her bed and sat down next to her, sighing.

"We're kinda done. She's not ready to be with me exclusively and I just can't be non exclusive anymore. I don't want to listen to her beg me to go out with other girls and I really don't want to watch her with other guys- but I certainly can't listen to her tell me I'm being unfair. Sometimes things with Brooke are just so hard, I mean, all the time they're hard. It's just like, I don't think it's worth it anymore. Fighting for her this hard. I think I'm more in love with the way Brooke loved me when we dated than I am with Brooke. I don't know, it's just, I'm so done, and so is she. I just wish it could've worked out for us" I babbled, on and on until Peyton placed her hand on my knee to cut me off. She laughed once as she watched me. "What? Why are you laughing?!" I insisted, laughing myself when she began to laugh even harder. She smiled, looking up and calming herself down.

"It's nothing, really. I just think that you've got it all figured out. You're coming to me for advice, but the truth is, the problem is already solved. You just need to deal with it" Peyton elaborated. "Sometimes people just aren't meant to be" She added. "Love isn't supposed to be this hard. You shouldn't have to jump through a million hoops. If things were meant to be with you and Brooke, she would know it too, you know? You've been pursuing this with her, and she loves you, yes, and you love her, but sometimes that doesn't mean you are meant to be" Peyton explained. I had to give it to the girl- she was great with words. I nodded, agreeing with what she was saying. I remembered back to Peyton and my night in the motel room last year; the easiness of it all, until we realized what we were doing that is. Being with Peyton, both as friends and romantically had always been so easy. She forgave me when I made mistakes and we made mistakes together. With Brooke, it was the two of us constantly making mistakes, and neither of us being able to forgive the other.

"Yeah, Pey, I think you've got something. I just remember that night at the motel room in the storm, and every other time we've hung out as well. Even when we are friends, it's just so simple and easy. It's so natural. Where as with Brooke it feels like we have to fight each other for everything" I explained, trying to do my thoughts justice. She laughed once again. "Seriously, Pey?! What did I do this time?!" I asked jokingly, laughing once.

"That's not what I meant Luke! I mean, yes, that is what I meant but I didn't mean us! But you have the idea. I love you and I love Brooke, and I don't think either of you should have to be going through so much turmoil. I swear you two have spent more time yelling at each other than not in the past year and that's really not good for either of you" Peyton explained. I nodded, thinking to myself. I remembered back to when Brooke and I were dating for real last year, and when I kept thinking to myself that I wished I had just waited for Peyton to come around. I definitely fell for Brooke, but Brooke wasn't my first choice. In that moment, I couldn't help but to feel that I'd done both Brooke and Peyton a disservice. Brooke because I had put her through all of this and now I'm not actually sure that it's her I'm in love with, and Peyton because I think I may actually like her and she's Brooke's best friend. "You okay there? Looks like there's a lot of wheels turning in that head of yours" Peyton added, placing her hand on my upper arm. I turned to look at her, faced with an utter confusion.

Then it happened. I truly don't know why or how, and I'd like to say I don't know who started it but I know it definitely wasn't Peyton. Before I could really register what was happening, Peyton was pinned under me on her bed, our lips on a hot, lustful agenda. I felt her nails scrape up my back as I cupped her face with one hand and moved the other down her side. Our tongues were in a heated battle, and I was so lost that I didn't hear a pair of footsteps walk up the stairs and into the room. That is until a shoe hit my back, causing me jump and consequently hit my head on the post of Peyton's bead. I looked over at the door, holding my head in my hands, to see an extremely angered Brooke Davis. But instead of letting out a string of curses or shouting like I'd expected, she bit her lip hard, and ran out of the house. I heard the door slam hard even from upstairs, and I knew that I should go after her, but I just couldn't.

"Leave" was Peyton's only demand.

"Look, Peyton, I'm sorry-" I started, only to be cut off.

"I said leave" She repeated, more angry this time. She had moved, and was now sitting cross legged in the center of her bed, her head down. I sighed, frustrated with all things related to life, and walked out of her room and down the stairs.

Welcome to my life. Or, as some people like to call it, the Bermuda Love Triangle.


	2. Chapter 2

Hey guys! So, sorry for the lack of any author's notes on that first chapter- I'm a major virgin and had no idea I had to put it in as part of the document when I uploaded it. Anyway. Just wanted to say, thanks SO much to my reviewers! I was so excited when I saw, and therefore I decided to write the second chapter. My writing will be slow until the end of the month, because I'm a senior in high school, and my midterms are the end of January, and the grades I get up to and including those midterms go to the colleges I applied to, so yeah. This is my first story on here, as I formerly mentioned, but I used to write on JBFF (I'm a Demi Lovato fan). Sorry for the lengthiness of this- definitely did not think that was a word- and thanks so much for reading my story! It probably won't be Leyton endgame, I can tell you that, because I really don't like Leyton that much, but it may not be Brucas endgame either, because well, they seem pretty screwed up don't they?! But I can promise that at some point you will get another pathetic Lucas speech about how much he loves Brooke, because those always melt the cheese in my heart ;). Anyway, thanks for reading!

Lucas' POV

Today is Saturday. Saturday's should be fun; I should be off at the river court with the guys or out with Brooke. Instead, I'm dialing Haley's number over and over again, to no avail. I wish I could just go over to her house and force her to come talk with me, but since her and Brooke are room mates now, that surely isn't going to happen. "Dammit Haley just pick up the damn phone!" I yelled to the air, throwing my phone to the ground and groaning, exasperated. I just didn't know who else to call. I got up, leaving my room and rolling my eyes at what I'm about to do.

"Okay, so, about 12 hours ago, you became the reason your girlfriend hates both of us, and I demanded that you leave, and now your genius plan is to come see me? Good move, Luke" Peyton said with a snarky tone. She's standing in between the black and red painted doors of her closet and she laughs once as she looks at me over her shoulder.

"It's not like I had anyone else to go see! Haley lives with Brooke and well, since this is kind of your fault too, I figured you would be more pleasant than Brooke, but I guess I'm wrong once again" I remarked, annoyed. "You are her best friend. You screwed up just as much as I did, Peyton. You're just too good to admit it" I added, regretting the words the moment they left my mouth. On cue, Peyton spun around and stomped over to me.

"Oh, really Lucas?! It's my fault that you kissed me five seconds after breaking things off with MY BEST FRIEND, who, by the way, already slammed a door in my face already this morning!?" She yelled. I'd seen Peyton Sawyer mad before, but I'd never seen anything like this. Wait. Did just say "after breaking this off"!? She thinks we actually broke up?! Why on Earth would she think that!?

"I may have kissed you, but you kissed me back and you know it Peyton!" I yelled. Oh, and also, Brooke and I didn't actually break up. That one is probably better kept under wraps. Peyton crosses her arms over her chest and backs up to the wall across from where I'm sitting on her bed, and slumps down to the ground against it.

"So why are you here? To get my forgiveness for ruining my relationship with my best friend for the second time in the past year?! Or to make out with me some more" She asked, a mix between angry and disgusted. "I love Brooke, and I cant' believe I did that to her. Twice, god damn it! I did it to her twice! It's your fault, Luke. You just dropped right into our lives and stomped on Brooke's heart and my best friendship. Why did you do it, Luke?!" She asked, pleading with her eyes for some truth out of this triangle of lies.

"Why did I do what? Kiss you? Be Brooke's girlfriend? Do it all twice?" I asked, annoyed by her question.

"Why did you kiss me!" She replied, frustrated and curious all at the same time.

"I don't know, Pey. I just, I felt like shit about things between Brooke and me, and we were talking and I just realized that maybe Rachel was right and Brooke really isn't the one for me and then I was thinking that maybe it was you and then all of a sudden I was kissing you, and I'm sorry, look, I know I screwed with your friendship with Brooke, but I'm gonna fix it" I said, determined. Peyton groaned and threw her head back against the wall.

"Lucas, we are so wrong that I have no idea how you could think we were right! And you are the last person Brooke is going to listen to now! And Rachel, really?! You're taking advice from Brooke's #1 hater?!" Peyton exclaimed, getting progressively louder and angrier as she spoke. God dammit this is screwed up.

"But we aren't wrong, Peyton! We just had the wrong time. But Brooke always said that people who are meant to be will find their way in the end. Me and Brooke have never found our way, but me and you, we always find our way in the end" I explained. "I promise I'll make this right for you" I added, deciding to neglect the whole Rachel thing. Peyton raised her hands to cover her face, shaking her head.

"But this isn't the end, Luke!" She stated, groaning. "You know what I think is the worst part of this whole situation? It's that you care more about my friendship with Brooke than you do about yours" She explained. "I don't get you. You spent all summer going on about how much you lovveee Brooke, and then you come in here saying that you'll make this right FOR ME?! If you really think I'm to blame for last night, you have no reason to want to fix this. Your whole way of thinking and doing things is SO screwed up! Oh, Peyton screwed up any chance of a future I had with my ex girlfriend, so let me make things RIGHT for her?!" She yelled. There goes that ex girlfriend thing again. Damn, Lucas. I sat there for a moment, taking in her words. I had no idea what to say.

"I guess I just know that me and Brooke are done and that we don't have a future, especially after last night. But I really love who you are, Peyton, and even if it's not romantic, I want us to have a future" I told her, honestly. Peyton shook her head one last time before getting up off of the ground and motioning towards the door.

"I've heard enough, Lucas. Thanks for making me rip out my best friend's heart" She snapped, her eyes hard with frustration, but the hints of sadness came through the edges. I groaned, yet again, and got up off of her bed, following her motion towards the door.

"I'm sorry, Pey" I added on my way out of her room. I glanced over my shoulder just in time to see her roll her eyes. Well that went well.

Peyton's POV

I couldn't believe I was doing this, yet again, but here I was, knocking on Haley and Brooke's front door, like the pathetic excuse for a best friend I am. After a few minutes of persistent knocking, a tired and annoyed looking Haley James Scott opened the door, brushing her hair back with her fingers, a remark on the tip of her tongue.

"Look, Haley, please. Just let me talk to her, I have to explain something" I told her.

"Ugh, you have no idea how many messages saying that exact same thing Lucas has left on my cell today" Haley replied, annoyed, but as far as I could tell, not as much so with me as I had originally anticipated.

"Please, Haley. You screwed up too. Just let me try and make things better" I added, hoping this would break her. Luckily, Haley let out an annoyed, yet promising sigh.

"I'm never going to live that one down, am I?" she asked, stepping out of the door way and letting me in.

"Thanks Hales!" I replied, smiling, as I walked past her into the living room of the house, where my eyes came in contact with a certain brunette, scrunched up in the fetal position behind a box of tissues and an untouched plate of dinner.

"Haleyyyyy!" Brooke whined when she saw me. She covered her face with the covers. "I thought you liked meee!" She added, and Haley just laughed once before walking off to give us some space. The moment she was out of sight, any signs of weakness or sadness on Brooke disappeared.

"Look, Brooke, I-" I started, but was soon cut off by the devil in distress.

"No, you don't get to 'Look Brooke' me! You are a two time backstabbing bitch of a best friend and I don't want you in my house! Are you really THAT in love with him that you couldn't keep you hands and your lips off MY MAN!? Did you learn NOTHING from the first time we went through this!? You'll be lucky if I ever forgive you for this!" She yelled, and I had to hold back a chuckle when I heard Haley whistle in response from the bedroom. I snapped back to the conversation, the comebacks flowing right out of me.

"First of all, if he was actually worth all of this, and he actually loved you, he wouldn't think of kissing anyone but you. Second, HE kissed ME, not the other way around. Third, you are being a bitch and jumping to conclusions you don't have nearly enough information to jump to! And if that's how you're gonna act, then I don't really care if you ever forgive me!" I yelled, instantly regretting the last part of my rant. Her lips began to turn white at their intersection and her eyes scrunched as she took in my words. Classic Brooke being a bitch because she actually wants to cry look.

"So what, you just think you can make out with my boyfriend behind my back and I'm going to be all sunshine and roses with you? Even if he kissed you first, you were kissing him back. When I walked in that room, your nails were running up his back and your tongue was in his mouth! And lastly, why the hell are you even here if you don't care about me forgiving you?" She asked, the blanket that had previously encased her figure thrown off to the side somewhere, and her fetal position exchanged with a stance of anger and power.

"HE. IS. NOT. YOUR. BOYFRIEND!" I yelled, exasperated at this whole thing. I found the whole situation bizarre. She's mad at me because her ex boyfriend kissed me? Bullshit.

"Just because we were nonexclusive doesn't mean that YOU are on the list of people he's allowed to kiss! I just don't get it, Peyton. Let's say I was in love with Jake. Even then, I wouldn't ever think about touching him, because you loved him and he loved you. Even if ten years went by and you were with someone else. It just wouldn't feel right to me! I just don't get why you have to take away from me the only things that I have! Yes, your mother died and your father is at sea and Jake left, and you know what Peyton, that freaking sucks, but it doesn't mean you have the right to take away everything I have! And you know what, Peyton, my parents are in California right now, and they don't give a rats ass about me! They NEVER have! And the only two times I've been in love, with the same guy, may I add, YOU screwed it up for me! What the HELL is your problem!?" Brooke screamed, her stance disintegrating into one that reflected the pissed off, hurt, and fragile B. Davis that she was. I took in her insults with strength, ignoring the way in which I understood how she could feel that way. This is fighting time, not admitting to crimes I didn't commit time.

"I did NOT ruin your relationship with Lucas, Brooke! That was all you! All I did was solidify that the two of you are not meant to be and will never be right together! I don't owe you anything! It's not my fault that Lucas likes ME more than he likes you! With the way you treat him, I'm surprised it took him this long to figure it out" I yelled, before storming out of her house. She just thinks she can blame me for everything she's done. Oh, Peyton ruined my relationship. Really? Because last I heard, your relationship was over before I entered the picture. I don't even know how I've ever been friends with such a flat out bitch.

Lucas' POV

The knocking on my door roused me out of my sleep. Damn. I looked over at the clock; it was only 9:30PM. I laughed once at myself for even being asleep at this hour, before getting out of bed and opening the door. Behind it stood the last person I ever expected to see. Her hands were on her hips and there were still remnants of black eye liner smudge under her eyes.

"Did you tell Peyton that we broke up before you kissed her!?" She yelled. Yep, you got it. It's Brooke Davis. I swallowed, scrunching my face up as I tried to find an answer to that question that wouldn't end in me being punched by my now apparently ex girlfriend. "I asked a yes or no question, not list the second 100 digits of pi, asshole" She snapped. I couldn't help the laugh that escaped my mouth. "Why are you laughing at me?!" She added, exasperated.

"Who knew Brooke Davis knew what pi is?! Or that there are more than three digits" I replied, finding it hilarious but knowing I shouldn't.

"Just answer my damn question" She snapped, her whole body screaming with rage. I bit my lip, blinking slowly once, knowing that I just had to admit it.

"Sort of. I mean, I didn't mean to, I didn't actually come out and say that I just said that we were done meaning it in more of a 'I think we are over' way than a 'we broke up' way, but that's how she took it and I didn't know that until this morning. It was just a misunderstanding Brooke" I explained, trying to get as much of the story out before she hit me with her shoe again. I exhaled when I got through with my rant, taking a moment to pray to myself before looking up at her face.

"Oh my god! You played her! You made her think that we broke up so that she would kiss you back! I mean, either way she shouldn't have kissed you back but that isn't the point at this moment and I guess that kind of explains what she said earlier. She was right, Lucas. She didn't ruin our relationship" Brooke snapped, her eyes boring fire into mine. "Where she wasn't right is that I didn't either. YOU did, you asshole. You ruined our relationship, and you ruined any future you had with Peyton. But you know what, you can't ruin me and Peyton! I won't let you take everything away from me. Nobody steals from Brooke Davis!" She yelled, before slamming the door in my face.

This hasn't been the best weekend, has it? The two girls I love (and I'm pretty sure I'm in love with one of them, I'm just suddenly not sure which one) officially both hate me and have decided to team up against me, when seemingly they hated each other two hours ago.

Yippee!

Hey guys! Thanks for reading, once again. I like to stay in one point of view, but I had to jump to Peyton's POV for a little while because I wanted you to see how the whole Brooke and Peyton fight went. I know it's super dramatic right now, but bear with me, I will try to balance out the drama with a bit more romance and humor in the coming chapters. And lastly, I'd love to hear your feedback! Thank ya!


	3. Chapter 3

So you, my readers (yes YOU), have all experienced one of my most embarrassing moments. On my intro to the last chapter, I made a comment about being a virgin. I meant that I was new to this site. I actually said (name of this site) virgin, but apparently it took the (name of this site) part out when I uploaded it. This a classic example of what I meant when I said I was a (name of this site) virgin- I have no idea how it works. So, I'm reallllllllly sorry if the fact that I pretty much said I was a virgin is realllly inappropriate, but I hope it did make you laugh. And I hope you didn't think I was insane. Because I'm really not. My face has been red as a tomato since I saw that it changed that. FML. Anyway. Thanks for reading, and reviewing. And no, I'm not dead. I just really wasn't kidding when I said that I wouldn't really be updating until my midterms were over. Thanks for reading.

Peyton's POV

*Knock, Knock*. Damn, is that the door?

*Knock, Knock*. *groans*

*Knock, Knock*. Who the hell is at my door?!

*Knock, Knock*. Seriously?! Groaning once again, I pull the warm covers off of my body and walk out my bedroom door. When I get to the top of the stairs, I see Brooke closing my front door behind her. "So, how many times were you gonna knock before you just used the key?" I asked, slightly annoyed, and much too groggy to carry out any sort of conversation with Brooke.

"Get your butt down here, I'll make some coffee. We need to talk" Brooke proposed. I let out a sigh before trekking down the stairs in my long sleeping shirt. By the time I got to the kitchen, Brooke was already brewing some coffee.

"So, what's so urgent that you need to come over to my house at 9AM on a Sunday morning?" I asked, confused and kind of impressed at the same time. I took a seat at the island as Brooke poured the coffee in mugs and set one in front of me, standing across the island.

"I went to see Lucas last night" She started. I raised an eyebrow, suspicious as to why she had undergone a 360 in the past twelve hours, and how seeing Lucas could have induced it. "Because I realized that you didn't know that we actually weren't broken up when you two kissed. I know you thought we were, but we weren't, and I kind of confronted him about it. It doesn't make what you did okay, at all, but it makes what he did even worse. I just thought that you needed to know that as well, before you get off thinking that Lucas is at all innocent in this situation" She explained. I didn't say anything at first; I couldn't. I just couldn't believe that he did that. And as enraged I was with the brunette that stood before me, I was starting to understand why she was so angry.

"Look, Brooke, I'm really sorry-" I started, only to be cutoff by miss Brooke herself.

"Peyton, I didn't come here for an apology, okay? I just came to tell you that, because I think you should know, and whether or not it would have impacted your decision to kiss him, well, I don't really care and I don't really think it would have. I'm only here to tell you that" She explained, and I nodded, feeling the tears sting the back of my eyes. "I should go" Brooke added, nodding her head in silent agreement with her decision, grabbing her purse and heading out of the kitchen. I wanted to yell something out to her that would make it better, that would erase what I did, that would make our friendship strong enough to make it through this, but I couldn't think of anything, so I let her walk away before the tears began falling from my eyes.

I've spent seemingly the entire day thinking about it all. My friendship with Brooke, my relationship with Lucas, and the giant mess we were all in at the moment. Actually, it's 3:00PM already and I'm still here, on the stool next to the island, in my sleeping shirt, a cup of cold coffee in front of me. My eyes were drained of tears, and my thoughts were racing. Brooke and I are so close, and we've worked so hard to keep our friendship over the years that I can't imagine losing it over a guy, but I'm also not sure that Lucas is just a guy. I wouldn't kiss just any guy that my best friend was dating behind her back twice, right? There had to be something deeper there; feelings for him that I haven't allowed myself to feel. Feelings that Lucas also feels. On one hand, I've already royally screwed up my friendship with Brooke, so why not be with Lucas if I really like him? Then there's the fact that he let me believe him and Brooke were broken up when they weren't. And the fact that I will always care about Brooke as a friend, no matter what happens. I could also cut Lucas out of my life completely, and work on trying to win back a friendship with Brooke, and then maybe down the line Lucas and I would be friends again. Or I could let us all hate each other and lose both of them, which is obviously not preferred, but at least that way I wouldn't have to choose between them. They were my closest friends. I shouldn't have to choose.

"Peyton, why are you calling me?! I swear, I am being shoved in the middle of this love triangle and that is not a fun place to be!" Haley exclaimed. She sounded exhausted and annoyed and just drained.

"Okay, Hales, I'm sorry, but I just need some advice really quick" I replied, biting my lip in hopes that she would agree.

"Peyton, if you want to make things better with Brooke, leave her alone. She needs time to think and to calm down about this. What happens between you and Lucas is up to you and Lucas" She explained. I nodded from the other side in agreement, but I still wasn't satisfied with that. I needed to make things right now, not a month from now when Brooke finally gives me the time of day. I may not be there with her at the moment, but if there's one thing I know about Brooke Davis, it's that she's stubborn as hell when she's wrong, and even more so when she's right. And this time, she's right.

I stare over my shoulder as I stand in the dark room off the hallway at school. It's early morning, and I know Lucas has to pass through here on his way to class. There's no way to avoid it; we need to talk, and we both know it. I finally see him coming towards me, and I grab him by his arm, ignoring his girly squeals and pulling him into the classroom with me, shutting the door.

"Peyton!? What the hell! You scared the crap out of me!" He exclaimed, and I rolled my eyes, letting go of him.

"Whatever. We need to talk" I replied cooly. It would definitely help if I knew what I wanted to say.

"About?" He asked, still slightly annoyed. His eyes pierced into mine and his hands dug into the pockets of his jeans. I couldn't help but admire his physic and his baby blue eyes for a moment before remembering how annoyed I was at him. I tore my eyes from him and poked his chest.

"You being a jerk and ruining everything?!" I exclaimed, trying to stay as quiet as I could to avoid being caught. His face instantly transformed to show the way he was suddenly insulted, and I laughed once.

"You know that what you did was no better than what I did, right?" He asked, annoyed and clearly pissed off at me.  
"Except I didn't lie to you! You let me believe that you and Brooke had broken up when you hadn't!" I yelled.

"So!? Would that have really changed your decision to kiss me back?! Whether or not we were dating or had broken up hours before doesn't really change anything, does it!?" Lucas replied, annoyed and in some ways, right. But that doesn't change how mad I was.

"We're done. I don't want to be your friend, I don't want you to lean on me, I don't want to lean on you, and I certainly don't ever want to kiss you. There is way too much of a rift between us for me to ever get over it" I explained, not making eye contact and kind of amazed with myself for saying it. He raised his eyebrows at me.

"You can say that now, Peyton Sawyer, but eventually you'll realize that I'm not just some guy you kissed behind your best friend's back. And if you think Brooke is going to forgive you, you're wrong. I'm willing to be your friend, to be anything you want me to be, so that neither of us will be alone. Brooke doesn't want either of us, and she isn't going to. So you can either be alone, or get over yourself" He spat, and walked towards the door- and into it. I couldn't help but laugh, even though I had been spitting angry and devastated just moments before. Lucas turned the doorknob, but the door didn't open. I walked up to the door and pushed him aside.

"Move over, you idiot" I murmured, before trying the door myself, also to no avail.

"Looks like we're locked in" Lucas stated. I groaned, walking back to the wall and sliding down it, Lucas beside me.

"What about Brooke?" I asked him, confusion and curiosity getting the better of me.

"What about her?" He replied nonchalantly, to the point where I felt disgusted.

"Are you going to try to make things right with her? Don't you feel bad? Don't you have feelings for her?" I asked. He put his hand on my leg and sighed.

"Of course I have feelings for her, I really like her, and I might even love her. I just can't shake this feeling I keep getting that you and I are meant to be" He explained. I sighed at this. Of course I liked Lucas. I've liked Lucas since the day he fixed my car. But did I have a weird feeling we were meant to be together?! No way. Right?

"Lucas, we aren't meant to be. You and me. We're great as friends, we really are. And yeah, I like you. But you and Brooke work, really well. We are way too similar. You and Brooke have so much to learn from each other, such a spark between you. You can't honestly tell me that kissing me was nearly as great as kissing Brooke" I explained. He just laughed, like somehow the answer to that last question was irrelevant.

"I feel like I don't know her. Brooke. I don't know what her favorite ice cream flavor is, what her favorite movie is, what her greatest fear is, who she dreams of meeting one day, how she feels about not having her parents around. I don't know Brooke Davis. We've been dating on and off for almost a year and I barely know her as a person" He explained. I understood that. I understood the way he felt. But that was Brooke; she isn't really all that open about who she is. She'd much rather make out in strangers' hot tubs and use sex as a way to distract Lucas than actually carry out a deep conversation.

"Then get to know her. I don't know, Luke. She's changed a lot, she's grown up, and I think that you are just really messing with her. And even though I like you, I can not and will not ever be with you, kiss you, or anything of the sort again. Even if she decides not to give you another shot, I you and me will not be together. I'm sorry" I told him. It felt like the weight of the world had been lifted off my chest. And in that moment, a teacher walked in the door, and we both sprung up, consequently scaring her half to death. "I'm so sorry!" I exclaimed, panicking. "We were locked in here" I added, trying to make the situation less awkward. The teacher simply nodded, and Lucas and I took off in either direction to get to class. I bit my lip as I walked down the hallway, willing myself not to look over my shoulder at him. I couldn't shake this feeling that I had just ended my friendship with him. That in that dark, lonely room, Peyton Sawyer and Lucas Scott finally fell apart.

Thanks so much for reading! I will try to update again by next weekend!


	4. Chapter 4

Hey guys! Just to clarify, this story will be Brucas! Hopefully soon! So no need to worry about the Leyton. I think if I didn't work through whatever Lucas and Peyton always thought they could have together it would seem like they still thought about what could have been. Also, I made a reference to the Comet which doesn't happen until seasons 5 or 6, but it's not really a spoiler and it doesn't matter if you don't understand it.

Peyton's POV

It's times like this when I wonder why my father leaves alcohol in the house when he's never here, but I'm not complaining. As I finish off the bottle of wine I laugh, reflecting on the day. After speaking with Lucas in the morning, I had spent the whole day trying to approach Brooke and get her to talk to me. She was flat out ignoring me, and even pushed me out of her way when I tried to block her! I don't know what her problem is. I'm not into her boyfriend! I told him I wasn't going to ever date him, and I have been on HER side this entire time! I mean, I like Lucas, because, well, who doesn't like Lucas, but I wouldn't go after him because he his her boyfriend! He is the one that kissed me! Twice.

Why am I even bothering with Brooke?! It's not like she's been a good friend to me all these years. She knew I liked Lucas when she first went after him. He liked me first. But you know Brooke Davis; she doesn't stop until she gets what she wants. So why should I? I laughed to myself again as I took a gulp out of the second bottle. What am I doing, stuck in my house drinking bottles of cheap wine when I could be out having fun? I deserve to be out having fun! I bet you Brooke is out having fun. I doubt she even cares about Lucas anymore. Anyway, Lucas loves me. He's never going back to her. For once in her life, someone is going to put Brooke Davis in her place. So I got up off my butt, grabbed my wallet and the bottle of wine and headed out the door. I wasn't quite drunk enough to go see Lucas yet, so I headed off to the bar. At least Brooke did one smart thing in her life: make me a fake ID.

The bar is hot and stuffy, and I'm on my fifth mojito, not to mention the bottle and a half of wine I drank before I left home. I could hold my liquor after being friends with Brooke for the past few years, but I really didn't drink like this usually. I saw Brooke in a booth in the back corner. She was sipping a fruity drink of some sort and there was a guy who had to be at least thirty sitting next to her, whispering in her ear. I stared at her for a few minutes. Somewhere inside me I knew she wasn't happy, but I let the alcohol tell me she was. I let it tell me that she was moving on and that she didn't care about Lucas or me. I asked for another mojito and the man behind the bar simply laughed at me and shook his head, before refilling my glass and placing it back in front of me. As I looked over at Brooke, I got angrier by the moment. The guy was practically kissing her and she was inviting him. Her shirt was so low cut that the cups of her bra peeked out above the neckline and the man had his head over her shoulder, staring down at her cleavage. It was disgusting to think that Brooke could care that little. That she could just sit there and sip a mojito while a fully grown man touches her like that. She turned to him and grabbed his face before kissing him, and I laughed out loud, before putting down some cash and walking out. I've seen enough.

Lucas' POV

Now not only am I grieving the loss of one girl, but two. My girlfriend and the comet slash my best friend, Peyton. I just can't fathom how it came to this; how I fell for someone I didn't know and how I lost the girl I did know. A moment later, I heard a knock on my door. "Peyton!? What are you doing here?" I asked, shocked. She really made it seem today like we would never speak again. She grasped the door with her right hand and my hand with her left. She looked up at me, laughing and smiling drunkenly.

"Oh Lucas, you know it's you and me. It's alwaysss been me and you and Brooke needs to just go brooke herself. I love you Lucas" She announced, stumbling into me, grabbing my chin and pulling my mouth to hers.

Alcohol. She reeked of alcohol. She pushed me back into my room and against my bed, and straddled me, unbuttoning my shirt. "Don't you love me Lucas?" She slurred, and I almost believed it. I almost said it back and pulled her shirt off as well. But I sat there as she pulled my jeans off, and it all suddenly made a lot of sense. "Don't you want me?" She asked. It seemed as if she was trying to be sexy, but between the slurring and the fact that I just wasn't turned on by her, she fell horribly short. When she ran her fingers up my chest I thought of Brooke. I thought of the way she made me feel, the mischevious look she wore in her eyes and the way she could be sexy without even trying. And here Peyton was, trying desperately, and it was kind of pathetic. I shook my head, picked her up off me, and got up off the bed.

"I think you should go" I told her. She looked up at me from on my bed, her mood suddenly turning dark. Her face fell and her eyes began to tear up.

"But Lucas, I love you and you love me and we are meant to be!" She yelled, before being interrupted by her sobs.

"No, we're not, Peyton. Please, come on" I tell her, grabbing her off of the bed, picking up her shirt and tossing it over her shoulders, and guiding her towards the door. "I'll see you tomorrow. Make sure you put some Advil next your bed before you fall asleep, okay?" I ask. I will always care about Peyton Sawyer, as a friend. But as I watched her walk out of my bedroom, I realized exactly how much I had screwed up. It's Brooke; it's always been Brooke. And I'm an idiot. Once again.

"Hey Luke! What's up in love triangle land?" Haley asked, laughing once as she sat down next to me and wrapped an arm around me. I sighed, holding Haley close to me. Damn, I really missed my best friend.

"Well, Peyton showed up at my doorstep last night completely shit faced drunk and tried to have sex with me, after she told me that she loved me and we are meant to be" I explained. "Oh, and this is after she said she would never kiss me again yesterday morning" I added. Haley laughed once.

"Oh goodness, poor Brooke. She came stumbling in the door at like three am saying that she slept with some thirty year old guy. She's in a really bad, bad place, Luke. She cried for hours when she came home. I think that she really loves you, and if you love Peyton, I mean, she'll move on I guess" Haley explained. I couldn't help but be really worried about Brooke. We all know how she gets when she's not feeling her best, I mean, she's the one that gets all those fake IDs.

"Is she alright? Did he.." I suggested. She shook her head, and I nodded. "That's good" I added. She nodded, her face saddened by the discussion.

"So did you and Peyton sleep together?" Haley finally asked, worried. I shook my head.

"No, I sent her home. I realized that her and I are great as friends, but that I want to be with Brooke. It's actually really pathetic, I stayed up like all night writing this letter to her and I'm terrified to send it because I think it's too soon. It seems like she's still a total mess" I explained, hoping that Haley would advise me. She's usually good at guiding me in the right direction. She placed her hand on my arm.

"She's gonna be a total mess until you fix it. She loves you, and if you are really sure you love her, I say go for it. You break her heart and I break your face, okay?" She clarifies. I laugh, feeling immediately better. I pull Haley into a hug.

"Thanks Hales. You always know what to say" I replied, before grabbing my sandwich and thinking about how hard it would be to get Brooke back for the second time. Peyton caught my eye as she glared at me from across the lawn. She looked like a complete mess, which is not at all surprising due to her state last night. I felt really bad for her, she still is one of my closest friends, and just because I don't want to be romantically involved with her doesn't mean I want to lose her as a friend. Haley placed her hand on my arm to grasp my attention.

"She'll come around, eventually. She'll realize that having that you as a friend is better than not having you at all. Just be patient" Haley explained. She should really think about a career in therapy.

Now just to mail that letter, and hope that Brooke doesn't hurt me too badly when she reads it.


	5. Chapter 5

Hey! So I experimented with writing from Haley's POV in this chapter, later on, because I'm sick of writing from Peyton's POV, and having to rationalize why she does the stupid things she does in the story :P. I hope you enjoy!

Lucas' POV

"LUCAS EUGINE SCOTT!". I groaned, getting up off of my bed and heading out of my room in the direction of the scream. I knew who it was and wasn't sure if I should be scared or excited. When I walked into my living room there she was, her cheerleading uniform, her brunette locks swept back in a ponytail and a look of hurt and frustration across her face. In her left hand she held the letter I wrote the night Peyton and I had our little run in. That letter was brutally honest; it explained my point of view on everything. Our relationship, both of the times Peyton and I cheated on her, and even that night. On one note I was satisfied that she read it and that she is ready to talk about; on the other hand I'm scared. Scared that she won't be able to find it within herself to forgive me. Scared that she's moved on.

"I see you got my letter" I replied, as nonchalantly as possible. Her eyes widened.

"I SEE YOU GOT MY LETTER!?" She yelled. Maybe that was the wrong thing to say. "You cheat on me, twice, may I add, and then write me a letter about how you thought that you were in love with Peyton, but you really aren't?! After you two made out AGAIN!? So since you decided now that I'm the one for you, you're the one for me, right? I'm supposed to forgive you just because you were honest with me, for ONCE!?" She continued to yell, outraged at the situation. I couldn't say that I didn't understand her rage, but I knew that telling her everything would be the best way. It would be the only way for us to ever be able to let go of the third wheel on our tricycle. "And then, all you have to say is 'I see you got my letter'!". I couldn't help but notice how adorable and sexy Brooke Davis was when she was mad.  
"I don't know what to say. That letter is my heart, Brooke. It's honest. That letter contains the reason why we weren't working. It contains my fears and my regrets and my deep, honest feelings that I didn't even realize for myself until then. I love you, Brooke Davis. I am completely head over heels for you, and you are the one for me. Am I the one for you? I don't know. I know that what I've done is horrible and I'm sorry and I understand if you can't forgive me. I don't expect you to forgive me now. I hope you sleep on this for a little while and when you are ready we can talk. When you are calm and have thought it through and when we haven't seen each other or been together for a little while we can revisit it. I'll wait for you, Brooke Davis" I explained. She bit her lip, her rage turning to sadness. I understood her conflict and I felt bad for putting it on her, but there was nothing I could do now but tell her I love her and hope for the best. She nodded.

"Two weeks, Luke. Okay? I'll leave you alone, I'll continue ignoring Peyton, and I'll figure everything out. A week from Monday we meet by the lunch room after school and we talk, either way" She explained. I nodded, trying not to show off how excited I was by her agreement. "I'm not promising you anything, except that I'll be there to talk next Monday regarding what I feel. And, if you can, try to get that slut who is in love with you out of my hair? Thanks" She added. There it goes again. She couldn't seriously expect me to talk to Peyton myself, did she? Yes she did. I know she did. God, Brooke. There is nothing easy, ever, about me and Brooke. But she's the one for me. With a nod from me, she stormed out of my house, still clutching the letter in her left hand. I considered calling Haley to tell her about the situation, but then realized that since she lives with Brooke, she probably already knew what was happening. Besides, she's getting tired of everyone going to her for advice anyway.

Haley's POV

Oh my god, I am SO tried of everyone coming to me for advice! I love my friends and want to help them, but they have all forgotten that I need help too! My relationship with Nathan is not getting any better and none of my friends have been around to support me, and whenever they are around it's because they are looking for me to support them! At that moment, someone rang my door bell. Great, it's probably Brooke freaking out about whatever conversation she had with Lucas over that damn letter. I open it, and am about to close it again when the girl behind the door grabs it, pulling it open.

"Haley, come on. Just let me in" Peyton asked. I shook my head.

"Why are you even here? Brooke isn't here if you're looking for her" I explained, not wanting anything to do with her at the moment.

"I need to talk. I'll just be a few minutes" She replied. To me?! Oh no. No. I'm not getting caught dead with Peyton when Brooke could come home at any moment.

"No way. Brooke will be home in any second and she will literally kill the both of us if you are anywhere near here" I explained harshly. Peyton hadn't really been the most friendly to me when I came back from the tour and we weren't on great terms, so I had no reason to give her advice.

"Hales, please. Look, I know we aren't on great terms and I'm sorry, but I have no one else to go to on this" She explained. I bit my lip, not quite feeling bad enough for her to go against Brooke's wishes. This is her place. She invited me to live here, and here I was, about to invite her sworn enemy in to talk with me.

"Why can't you just go talk to Nathan?" I ask, annoyed. How did I end up stuck in the middle of this love triangle when everyone seemingly hates me for leaving Nathan, and Nathan has been able to completely avoid being the advice giver?

"Nathan does not want to hear anything about his ex girlfriend and his brother's relationship, plus he's going through a really rough time lately" Peyton explained. A rough time?! REALLY!?

"Oh, and I'm not!?" I exclaimed, moving again to slam the door in her face. She grabbed it once again, pushing her way inside.

"I'm sorry, Hales, I didn't mean that. But after leaving us high and dry for months without a call the least you could do is talk to me" She stated. My eyebrows raised once again.

"The least YOU could do is not be a bitch to me until you need my help and then come insult me! In Brooke's house! You know, the girl you tried to steal the boyfriend away from, who used to be your best friend!" I yelled. Peyton's face looked to be in shock, and I turned around to see what, or rather, who, she was looking at. And there Brooke stood, fuming. Hopefully not at me.

"Get out, Peyton" Brooke snapped. "Stop being a bitch. To me and to Haley. If you ever want to talk to me again, leave" She stated, putting her purse down and placing an arm around my shoulder.

"Yeah, because I care so much about talking to YOU" Peyton replied. Brooke quirked an eyebrow.

"Well, maybe you should stop being so careless with your friends. Now you don't have me or Lucas, and if you continue you act the way you are you won't have Haley either" She explained. I leaned into Brooke's body more for emphasis. Peyton used to be such a kind, friendly, lonely girl. Now she's just lonely, and seems to not care about anyone or their feelings.

"You don't have Lucas either, and the only reason you have Haley is because you didn't care enough about her to be annoyed that she left and didn't call any of us" Peyton insisted, and I bit my lip, hard, in anticipation of Brooke's reply, knowing just how wrong Peyton was (about the Lucas part, at least). Brooke simply held up the letter in her left hand.

"I do have Lucas. Lucas is in love with me, not you. That's why he kicked you out during your drunken, failed attempt to seduce him" Brooke replied, and I contained the giggles bubbling up inside me.

"Whatever, Brooke" Peyton snapped before finally walking out our door and slamming it behind her. We both sighed loudly and sat down on the couch.

"Thanks for that" I told her. She nodded, looking straight ahead of her. "Want to talk about the conversation with Lucas?" I ask. She shook her head.  
"Nah, not really. Believe it or not, I think I'm sick of talking about myself" She replied with a scoff. "What's going on with you and Nathan, by the way?" She asked. Finally! Someone cares about my life!

"Okay, so, last week..." I began. And we talked, probably for over an hour, about my current Nathan situation.

Thanks for reading! I am going to continue, hopefully, to update weekly. There will only be a few more chapters to this story, I believe. I am already starting my next story, but I am not going to begin publishing it until this one is finished (partially so that I am motivated to update this one, and partially because I have not titled the other one yet). That one is probably geared towards a different audience, so I'm not going to go on about it too much now, but basically it's Bethany Joy Lenz x Sophia Bush. I sort of ship Baley, but I find it hard at times because I love Naley and Brulian and even Brucas. So I'm writing Soph and Joy. :P. Weird, yes, and probably not up the alleys of anyone reading this story, but I thought I'd throw my idea out there anyway! Oh, and please tell me what you thought of Haley's POV!


	6. Chapter 6

Lucas' POV

It's been two weeks. Two painful, miserable, lonely weeks. And from the look of things, I'm not the only lonely one. Nathan has been moping around, still too stubborn to give Haley a second chance, Peyton has been moping around like she's invisible; she hasn't gone to cheer practice and sits on the other side of the classroom when I have class with her. Haley and Brooke have been partners in crime; they walk around together, Brooke being the enthusiastic "we're okay" one, and Haley going along with it. Today they are sitting under a tree together, Haley's head on Brooke's shoulder as Brooke strokes her hair and talks to her about whatever the two of them discuss. I'm sitting at a table with Mouth, Skills, Junk and Fergie as they all laugh about something that I'm not quite listening to. Peyton is sitting by herself in front of a tree across the courtyard, focused intently on some sketch. My eyes return to Brooke and Haley; I miss their presence terribly. Haley hasn't exactly been avoiding me, because we are very close after all, but she has been spending a lot of time with Brooke for the past two weeks. I think she sees that I have the Rivercourt guys to hang out with and doesn't want Brooke to be completely alone. Brooke doesn't do alone well. On the up side, today is the day. In approximately three hours and seventeen minutes Brooke and I will meet right back here, where we will have our first conversation since the morning she came to my house with the letter. I'm terrified, to say the least. I so badly need her in my life; these two weeks have only magnified what I felt for her, and I can only hope it's done the same for Brooke. Then the lunch bell rings, and when Brooke raises her head from looking down at Haley, our eyes meet for a moment. She bites her lip and looks away, before getting up, wrapping an arm around my best friend and walking away.

"So, what's the verdict?" I ask, trying to seem as light and nonchalant as possible. Brooke bites her lip hard again, sitting across from me on the bench.

"So, these past two weeks have been really hard. Haley's been there for me and I've been able to be there for her so that's been good, but I have a lot to explain to you" She starts, and I automatically become that much more nervous. Explain? She shouldn't have to explain anything. The answer should be 'yes, Lucas, I'm in love with you. Let's be together'. But instead of voicing my concerns, I nod. "I love you, Lucas. I think I'm in love with you. It's been really hard to stay away from you these past weeks. But, that being said, I have to tell you something" She starts. Okay, this is good! What does she mean she has to tell me something?!

"What's wrong?" I ask, concerned and nervous, my palms sweating as I run them across the front of my jeans.

"Haley is great to me, she's been an incredible friend for me. But I miss Peyton, a lot. You don't know a lot about my relationship with my parents, but I need to tell you this now. My parents don't really care about me. They've never been there for me, they don't care what I do, who I'm with. I need someone in my life that I can count on to be there for me. And ever since I was six years old, that person has been Peyton. Her mother died and her dad was abroad and my parents wouldn't have noticed if I set myself on fire. We were each other's support growing up, and I can't let go of our friendship over a guy. And you're a great guy, Lucas. But I can't trust you completely. You have to understand that. I can't trust that you will be there for me when nobody else is. That you'll never leave me. And I love Haley, but she's a singer! She may go on tour again next year and then I'm alone again and I can't be alone, I'm sorry. This may seem really selfish of me, but I can't be with you, Luke. I need to save my friendship with Peyton. I can't choose you over her. You're a boy, and yes, I love you, but so does she. She's my best friend. She's the only person that knows everything about me; who I am, who I'm not, and who I want to be. I need her in my life. I hope you can understand that" She explained, her voice faltering in places, tears slowly escaping her eyes. I didn't know if I should comfort her, scream at her, or walk away. Instead I went for logic in my pathetic attempt to persuade her otherwise.

"How can you trust her any more than you can trust me?! She hooked up with your boyfriend! Twice!That person isn't the person you cut others out of your lives for. And she's still going on saying that she wants to be with me! Of course I would never be with her, but do you want to say no to me and then have her go after me again? I just don't think she's been the friend to you that you're making her out to be in your mind" I explained, angry as hell, feeling somewhat bad for Brooke, but mostly bad for myself, and aggravated as ever with Peyton. Brooke bit her lip hard, some sobs and more tears escaping her eyes.

"I'm sorry, Luke. I love you, okay? I'll make sure Haley takes care of you, and you should really take care of her some more. She needs you. I don't know her the way you do. She's really hurting, and it doesn't help that her best friend isn't there for her" Brooke explained, making me feel horribly guilty, before she got up, grabbing her bag, wiping some of her tears and walking away. I watched as she disappeared into the parking lot, where she got in the passengers seat of her car. I wonder if Haley was in the drivers seat. I wonder if Haley and Nathan have spoken. I wonder if Haley is heartbroken. I wonder if Nathan is heartbroken. But mostly, I wonder how I got so lost hung up on a girl who cares more about her back stabbing best friend than the man who loves her.

Peyton's POV

Today is it. The day I finally break free of this; the guilt, the loneliness, the shame, the embarrassment. I haven't spoke to anyone in weeks. Not a "hello" in the hallway or a "what's up?" before class starts. Not a "can I have a vodka?" or a "can I have the check, please?". Silence. It's crushing, cutting; it defies who we are to the core of our being. And I can't do it anymore. The silence all day, ignoring all of the girls who laugh, all the guys who watch the girls, smirking, and all the lonely ones who lurk around and remind me of just how pathetic I look. The way Brooke holds Haley close to her the way she used to hold me close. The way Lucas looks at Brooke the way he used to look at me. There's only one more bottle of wine in my father's cooler, and it reminds me that now is the time.

"Okay, we're ready to start boarding flight 449 with direct service to Atlanta. We are now boarding all first class passengers as well as Zone 1" The lady says over the loud speaker, and I clutch my ticket, which specifies my Zone 1 seat, before getting up, pulling my backpack on. It would be a long night, with a flight to Atlanta and the three hour drive to Savannah after that, but it would be worth it when I would have someone to lay with. Someone to wrap their arms around me and someone to tell me that it's okay. Someone to break the silence. Because silence is the devil. Silence is what kills us while we live. I walk on to the plane and toss my backpack in the overhead bin before getting into my window seat. We could be together, Jake, Jenny and me. I could have a family. Brooke and I always said we were our own family. That's before I hooked up with the man she is head over heels for and the man that is head over heels for her too. And as much as it kills me, I know I have to go. I can't see them be together. I can't see Haley become her best friend. I can't keep drinking like this. I can't keep being silent. Jake can save me; I loved him once, and I know that if I let myself, I could love him again. So as the plane prepares for take off I prepare for the next chapter of my life. Brooke Davis, I love you. Lucas Scott, I love you. Haley James, I love you. Nathan Scott, I love you. But now is the time for me to move on. I've made much too big a mess here, and I want to be with people who can love me the way I love them. And as the plane lifts off the ground, I force myself to swallow and bite back tears. So long, Tree Hill.

Authors Note: Hey! I know this one isn't too long, but I think a lot happened! Don't you want to kill Peyton!? And Brooke! And Lucas! haha. But I think this story is actually nearing it's end. I believe there will only be about two or three more chapters before we say goodbye to Brooke, Lucas, Haley and Nathan. To be honest, I think we're saying goodbye to Peyton right now, but don't hold me to that. But now that Peyton's gone, Brooke and Lucas can have it... right? You'll see! Thanks for reading! I love you all for sticking with me! I'm so addicted to my other story (i've been writing it for two weeks and it's 25k words already) but I am going to finish this one! I like where it's going now and I'd love to hear some feedback!


	7. Chapter 7

Nathan's POV

"Atlanta" I said when I saw Brooke Davis standing at my front door. She looked at me, her face contorted in confusion. "You're here to ask me if I know where Peyton is. She's in Atlanta" I explained, trying to close the door before she could go off on me. Not only is it before school on a Wednesday, but I had just gotten back from my morning run and needed to shower before going to a basketball meeting at school; a meeting I definitely could not be late to.

"What!?" She exclaimed, pushing the door back open and shoving her way through the door and into my house before I could get it closed. "Peyton went to Atlanta? And she told YOU, of all people!?" She yelled. I really had no idea why she was so angry; aren't her and Peyton in like, the girl fight of the century or something? Anyway, I have gotten this far without having to get involved in that love triangle and couldn't be more annoyed with Peyton for drawing me in.

"I have no idea why she told me! But, she also said not to tell anyone but I knew you were going to figure it out eventually. Why do you even care?" I asked, and Brooke just huffed in the way she does when she knows she's being unreasonable, and I opened the door once again, motioning for her to leave. She took the hint, and walked out my door, and I slammed it shut. Women. They always run away. Peyton ran away to Jake in Atlanta, Haley ran away with Chris to tour. Nothing is ever enough for any of them.

Haley's POV

"Brooke, come on, we have to go to school" I whined, pulling the covers off of her. Believe it or not, when she returned from Nathan's she actually got back in bed, cheerleading outfit and all. And now here I was, looking ridiculous in my own cheerleading outfit and trying to drag her back out of bed so that I wouldn't be late to school. AP Calculus waits for no one.  
"Just go without me" She groaned, rolling over and covering her face with her pillow. I grabbed her feet and dragged her off of the bed until she was forced to stand up. "I hate you" She added, and I simply laughed.

"Uh huh, now let's get your depressed butt in the car" I replied, dragging her with me and shoving her half asleep body into the car. I was dying to know what had happened at Nathan's (had he mentioned me at all?), but it was beyond obvious that Brooke was not in the mood to talk about it. I hope that Peyton is just hiding around here and not actually gone, but I wasn't feeling too good about the situation. Brooke had spent all day yesterday looking for Peyton everywhere and was yet to find her, so she started going house to house to see if anyone else had seen her. Currently, Peyton was MIA. Not that I personally cared, but after Brooke broke up with Lucas for good over her, the damn girl better not have run away. Especially without telling anyone! I mean, who does that?!

Yes, okay, I know what you're thinking. You're making fun of how much of an apparent hypocrite I am. But it's Peyton who says that people always leave. Nobody ever expected her to actually be the one doing the leaving after all of that complaining. Talk about hypocritical. As you can tell, Peyton and I still aren't on great terms, which is fine. I mean, you don't need to be friends with everyone. I personally couldn't be happier that Lucas decided that he loves Brooke for real and was only in love with the idea of Peyton, but then of course Brooke had to be the ridiculously good friend that she is and break her own heart for the sake of her cheating, disappearing ex best friend. When we finally arrived at the school, I parked and tapped Brooke on the shoulder. She wasn't asleep, but she just seemed out of it. My heart broke to see her like this. I looked at the time and saw that I still had ten minutes until first period started.

"Brooke, tell me what happened this morning' I insisted, laying my hand comfortingly on her shoulder. She pouted and sighed before giving in.

"Peyton told Nathan that she was going to Atlanta. I guess to be with Jake; she told me a while back that he was down there" Brooke explained, and I felt horrible for her.

"Oh my gosh. Brooke, I'm so sorry!" I exclaimed, trying to hug her across the car. She smiled and shook her head like it was no big deal. Classic Brooke.

"It's fine, I'm just stupid" She replied. We both had to know that this wasn't true. I mean, Brooke Davis sucked at math and english and, well, everything related to academics, but she was actually very far from stupid.  
"Brooke, you're not stupid. You are just way too good of a person for your own good. If you think you screwed up with Lucas, just tell him that. He loves you. He'll give you another chance if you give him one" I explained, and she looked down, seemingly ashamed of her own thoughts. "What's going on in that head of yours?" I asked. She shrugged.  
"I just, was thinking maybe I should go after Peyton. You know, fix things with her. She ran away for a reason, and I feel bad because I'm that reason. You used to be friends with her but I've been hoarding you and Lucas was one of her best friends and he's been avoiding her like the plague because of me and she doesn't really have anyone else. It's all my fault and she's gone now. I can't just blame her and move on with my life" She explained. Brooke Davis is a much better friend and person than anyone gives her credit for.

"And I love you for caring about her like that, Brooke, but first of all, you aren't hoarding me. You're my room mate; you're the person that gave me a second chance when I screwed up, so I'm here for you always. Peyton hasn't even been nice to me lately! But my personal opinion of the matter aside, you should do what your heart is telling you. If it's telling you that you need Peyton as your best friend, I won't stop you from going to Atlanta. I just don't want you to get your heart torn in half if she doesn't agree to come home with you; if she chooses the boy over you after you chose her over the boy" I told her reluctantly. Personally, I just really wanted Brooke to be with Lucas. They were my two best friends and they were madly in love. It's not that I hate Peyton, because I don't hate Peyton; it's just that I think you have to follow your heart when you fall in love like that. I screwed up my relationship with Nathan by not realizing how important he was to me, and I just don't want Brooke to make the same mistake. And the last thing I want is for them to make me choose between them, because obviously I've known Lucas my entire life. I would hate for Brooke to end up the lonely one at the end of this love triangle from hell. Brooke nodded in acceptance of what I said, before I got out of the car and motioned for her to follow me. We only had a few minutes before class started and I couldn't miss a minute of AP Calculus because I am guaranteed to be completely lost if I do.

"You're going, aren't you?" I ask Brooke when I walk in our bedroom. Her duffle bag is out on her bed and she's shoving random clothes in it haphazardly.

"My flight leaves in two hours. I just have to do this, Haley, I'm sorry. If I don't I'll always feel bad and I'll always wonder. I'll always blame myself" She explained, and I nodded, not in acceptance but rather in understanding of her predicament. On one hand, I hoped for the sake of Brooke's sanity that Peyton agreed to return home with her, but the selfish side of me really wanted anything but that to happen. My selfish side simply wanted Peyton to turn Brooke down and for Brooke to come back and fall into Lucas' arms. And then maybe I can fall into Nathan's arms. Yeah, I know. It's a long shot.

"Okay" I said, walking up to her to give her a hug. "Do you want me to drive you to the airport?" I offered. She shook her head with a slight smile.

"You're an angel for asking, but it's not necessary. I'll just take a taxi" She assured me, and I nodded. I hugged her once again before walking back out of our room. I was planning on going for a walk down to the beach, where I'll inevitably find myself either at Nathan's house or the secluded area of the beach where we got married. It's what always happens.

"Call me when you get there, or text me, whatever. Just let me know you are safe and sound, okay?" I ask, and she nods, smiling back to me appreciatively. Now, about that walk and Nathan...

Author's Note: Damn Brooke! Why did she have to go find Peyton?! It was NOT my original plan at all, but it just seemed like something Brooke would do. I promise Peyton will be out of our hair soon enough! Y'all (or one person) said you like Haley's POV, so I decided to try that again (i happen to LOVE haley so why not). I have three more chapters planned out to round out the story and am hoping to continue writing one chapter every weekend. I plan on finishing the story by the end of March because that's when I have to start going to accepted student's days for college and decide where I'm going and also study for AP exams- lovely. You guys may want to kill me with how I plan on ending it though so I may add an epilogue onto the end so I don't end with a cliffhanger :P


	8. Chapter 8

Authors Note: Hey, so, I just really wanted to reply to this review because I found it really interesting but since it was posted by a guest I couldn't so therefore I'm doing it here! :P Also, I'm really sorry that I didn't update last week, I was away at a college weekend. But, here's a long(er) update to make up for it!

Hey-Lips: I don't like that Brooke doesn't care about school. I personally do. But, as you mentioned, that's how Brooke is written in the show. At this point in the show (early season 3) Brooke really cares way more about her love life than anything else. What I am going to do (and am doing to a certain degree) is incorporating the way that Brooke is a really incredible friend and the way she values friendship even though that doesn't come across in the show until a bit later. I'm just trying to write the character as true to who she was at that time of the show as I can, and I'm sorry if you don't like that version of her but I really don't want to stray from her character (even the parts of it that I dislike). I'm trying not to make her seem like an air head, but if she does I'm sorry, because that's not my intention. I thought that if she was school smart it would completely de legitimize her character because Brooke was not book smart in the show in high school (she did almost fail out of Calculus, after all). But I am trying to make Brooke a character that is smart in other ways and cares a lot about her relationships with those around her (Peyton, Haley, even Lucas) even if she doesn't care about grades. So, basically, what I'm saying is that I'm sorry that you are unhappy about how her character is being written, and I am going to try and continue to develop her as a smart human being (even if it's not school smart). Thank you, seriously, for your input and the time you took to review! It does really mean a lot to me.

Jake's POV

"Brooke?" I ask when I open the door. It was eleven PM and I had been sleeping when someone started pounding on the door. I was going to ignore it, but Peyton begged me to get up and get it. I told her it was probably just Nikki being obnoxious or some drunk college kid, but no, it was Brooke Davis. I guess I shouldn't be that surprised that she's here, but the way Peyton spoke about their fight made it seem like the last place you'd ever find Brooke Davis would be near Peyton Sawyer.

"Where's Peyton?" Brooke asked, pushing past me, into my house, if you could call it that.

"Why are you here? How do you even know where I live?!" I asked, very confused. Even Peyton hadn't known where I lived when she came down. She looked at me, annoyed. There were slight bags under her eyes and her jeans and cropped top were askew with her apparent exhaustion.

"I asked around" She stated nonchalantly. "Just tell me where Peyton is" She added. I hesitated, thinking about what to say. It was pretty obvious that she was certain Peyton was here, so I didn't think it would work to say that I didn't know where she was. At the same time, Peyton had seemed very adamant that she did not ever want to see Brooke Davis again. Before I could figure out what to say, she huffed, tossed her duffle bag down and started walking into the house, of course finding the way to the bedroom on the first try.

"Wait, Brooke!" I called, hoping that even if Brooke didn't stop, Peyton would hear me and decide to get dressed. I knew it couldn't help their current situation if Brooke walks in on Peyton in my bed naked and realizes that we slept together. Apparently the whole fight broke out because of Lucas? I don't know or even really care. I love Peyton, she's great, but the whole situation seems really messed up. I don't mind just being here whenever she needs it, but her being here isn't permanent. She has to finish high school at least. Even though I had respect for Peyton and her decisions, I knew that she had to speak to Brooke eventually. Especially if Brooke was willing to fly to Atlanta and drive up to Savannah to do so. I took off towards the bedroom, figuring that I should be there when this whole fight goes down in case they decide to get physical.

"Jake!" Peyton exclaimed when I got to the door. She was sitting in the bed, all wrapped up in the sheets and Brooke was shaking her head, exasperated.

"You slut!" Brooke yelled. "You did all of this to me because you supposedly love MY BOYFRIEND, who LOVES ME. And then I break up with him, and tell him we can never be together because I couldn't be with someone my BEST FRIEND loves and hurt her like that, even though I love him, and I come to find you and you're sleeping with JAKE!?" She yelled. I had to admit, she kind of had a point. I knew Peyton was in deep trouble with her friendship with Brooke, and I hoped they would be able to work things out eventually, despite the fact that it didn't seem like tonight would be that night.

"You broke it off with Lucas?" She asked, shocked. I saw the tears start to stream down Peyton's face as she rested against the headboard of the bed. Brooke was biting her help, apparently trying to stop tears from sliding down her own face as well.

"Yeah. That may have been the biggest mistake I ever made. And here I am, feeling guilty that you left because of me, and you don't even care, Peyton. If you cared about Lucas for real, you wouldn't be sleeping with HIM!" She yelled, pointing at me. That's not necessarily true, I mean, she could be sleeping with me because she loves Lucas for all I know. Peyton had seemed genuinely interested in being with me when she came down, but that doesn't really mean much. She could just be broken and lonely.

"Why the hell are you even here if you're just going to yell at me?! You've hurt me enough! You took all of my friends away from me because I was in love with someone who loved you. You always win, Brooke! Always! You have rich, living parents and Haley and Lucas and anyone else you could want! Just leave me and my life the hell alone!" She screamed, her face turning red with frustration and her eyes swelling up with tears as she sobbed. I could see the conflict on Brooke's face; she looked like she wasn't sure if she wanted to slap her or cry with her. She was silent for a moment, and she blew my mind away when she finally spoke.

"How did we get to this place, Peyton?" Brooke asked, teary eyed, biting her lip. She looked so vulnerable, and I was quite surprised. Brooke never seemed like the type of person to let herself be vulnerable.

"You were a bitch, Brooke! That's all you've done since you were nine! Be a bitch! Take everything away from me and use me and treat me like shit!" Peyton screamed. Okay, maybe that was a bit harsh. I could see sobs escaping from Brooke, but she held her teeth hard on her lips in attempt to hold them in.  
"I HATE YOU!" She simply yelled, pushing me away harshly to get to the door. "I came back for you, and all you can do is tell me how I take everything from you?! You have nothing to apologize for, nothing to feel bad about?! You don't care that I'm about to walk away from your life and never re enter it?!" She yelled, and Peyton looked at her ruthlessly. I knew Peyton was lying in that moment. Of course she cares about Brooke; probably more than she would ever be willing to admit. Yes, of course Brooke hadn't been the best friend ever to Peyton all these years (the claiming of Lucas, the constant drunk nights at parties and the selfishness that used to seem to own Brooke Davis), but she honestly didn't seem to be all that much in the wrong in this situation.

"I hate you too, Brooke Davis, and I always have and I always will" Peyton stated. I felt so uncomfortable, like I really should say something but then again I really shouldn't and I knew that Peyton was completely screwing herself over but there was nothing I could do to stop it.

"Haley warned me not to come, and she was right. Haley is a better friend to me than you could ever be. And I didn't steal her from you, you were a bitch to her when she came home and I gave her a second chance. I didn't steal Lucas from you, he was in love with me and you wouldn't stop going after him. And don't you dare use my family against me. You know that they couldn't care less about me" She explained, cooling her voice down a bit, but speaking with such an edge that it was kind of scary even to me. Peyton stayed silent, simply glaring at Brooke as she held the sheets as close to her as possible. "Goodbye, Peyton. Now I don't have to ever feel guilty about our friendship ending. This was all you. Have fun sleeping with Jake" Brooke finished, and began to turn around to walk back towards the foyer.

"I hope I never see you or your fat ass again" Peyton stated. I braced myself, hoping the untrue comment wouldn't cause Brooke to turn back around and slap the other girl. But Brooke took the high road for once and just walked away. I was kind of proud of her, and extremely disappointed in Peyton, but I knew it wasn't my place to judge since I hadn't been there to see the entire situation unravel from the beginning. I decided that I wouldn't make Peyton feel bad about it, since she probably would be doing that on her own within the next few hours. Instead, I simply waited a minute, walked towards the foyer and locked the door. I saw Brooke sitting on the sidewalk by the bus stop near my house. She was on her phone, and looked to be sobbing from the shaking in her body position. Part of me wanted to help her. But, I assumed she was speaking to Haley because of what she had said earlier about her being a great friend, and I knew that if she had Haley to comfort her, she definitely didn't need me. Also, I needed to be there for Peyton. Sure, she had screwed up royally, but that doesn't mean she doesn't deserve to have someone there for her. I sighed, locked the door and walked back towards the bedroom. Peyton was laying down on her stomach, her face completely absorbed by her pillow. I got in the other side of the bed and wrapped my arms around her waist, pressing a kiss to her shoulder.

"It's okay. Let's go to sleep" I stated, before resting my head next to hers and covering us with the thick, blue comforter.

Nathan's POV

"So, what's going on with you and Haley?" Luke asked as he handed me another beer. I took a sip, sighing as the cool liquid burned my throat.

"Don't you mean 'what's not going on between me and Haley?'" I replied. We were playing pool at the bar, and I was completely dominating. Apparently Brooke wasn't kidding when she said he sucked at pool.

"Why is nothing going on? You still love her, don't you?" Lucas asked me. I was slightly annoyed that he was bringing up Haley at a guy's night, well, actually, I was very annoyed. But I knew he wasn't going to relent until I gave him some sort of answer. I hit a shot and a purple ball rolled into a pocket.

"Yeah, of course, it's Haley. I just don't know if I can forgive her. She left me high and dry and I just don't want to be with someone who could do that to me. I need to matter to someone more than I think I matter to her" I explained honestly, motioning for him to take a shot. He groaned, hitting and missing horribly, the white ball moving directly into one of the pockets and missing all the other balls altogether.

"You matter to Haley, a lot. She's been miserable without you. And, I know it's not my business, but I think you should give her another chance. I know I would do anything to get Brooke to give me another chance. It's ridiculous. You both love each other and are lonely without each other" Lucas explained. I was automatically pissed off at him. He thinks he can give me relationship advice?! He's the one that cheated on Brooke, twice! With her best friend!

"You're right. It's none of your business" I insisted, taking another long gulp of my beer and hitting another ball into the pocket. Lucas simply shook his head, hitting somewhat better this time, the ball barely missing the pocket.

"I'm just saying, think about it. You don't have to commit to getting back together or anything, but maybe just hang out and talk about things. I'm only saying this because I care about both of you" Lucas explained. So much for him and his great advice. I was much more content to just be lonely and frustrated than to actually do something. Haley's the one that should be doing something. She's the one that ran away. Why would I ever want to get back together with her after she did that? She chose her potential music career over her husband! But I really did miss her. I took another sip of my beer, and allowed myself to think about how I haven't slept much lately. It's hard to sleep alone when you have to, but it's even harder to sleep alone when you know she's doing the same thing, not more than a few miles down the road. All the times I've been weak and allowed myself to wonder if she was thinking of me, if she was contemplating coming over and begging for my forgiveness and what I would do if she did. I took another sip of my beer and saw a chesty red head, who I soon identified as that new girl on the cheerleading squad, saunter up to me. I groaned, rolling my eyes. Usually I would jump at the chance to get with a hot girl like her, but I really didn't care at all tonight. Her 'do me' eyes were almost an annoyance. I was exhausted and frustrated and felt abandoned. So what, I loved Haley. That doesn't mean I don't deserve time to heal before I consider forgiving her. The girl pulled on my arm, turning me around and eying me seductively.

"Why don't we get out of here?" She suggested. I laughed once, pulling away from her, finishing off my beer and walking away from the girl. Lucas followed me out of the bar, laughing out loud at me as I waved down a taxi.

"What are you laughing at?" I asked him, as the taxi pulled over and we got in the back. Luke gave them his address and I gave him mine before he replied to me.

"You are so in love with Haley. You just turned down a sexy red head without a second thought. You need to realize that you're not going to be happy until you give her another chance" He stated. I rolled my eyes, but somehow I knew he was right. Haley James, the things you do to me.


	9. Chapter 9

Chapter 9

Authors Note: Hey guys! Just wanted to give you a heads up that this chapter is circled very much around Brooke and Haley's friendship. There's a lot of mentions of the couples but the whole thing is told from Haley's POV and it's pretty much just her interactions with Brooke and them being close friends like I wish they had shown more so in Season 3 of the show. Also, the part where Haley jumps out behind the pole to purposefully fall into Nathan did actually happen in OTH; I just changed parts of the scene to fit the story. Also, we are nearing the end of the story! There is going to be one more chapter, I believe, and I am willing to write an epilogue if people request it! (the ending will be a slight cliffhanger, and though I know some people enjoy to make their own assumption about what would happen, some like their loose ends tied).

Haley's POV

"Brooke, are you up?" I whispered from my bed across the room. She groaned lightly, and I took that to mean that she was. She rolled over, pulling the covers over herself. I sighed, knowing it would be difficult to get her out of bed and to school this morning. Brooke had luckily only missed one day of classes, since she arrived back here yesterday afternoon pretending everything was okay in classic Brooke style, even after the phone call I got at some ungodly hour the night before in which she sobbed and went on about this horrible fight she had had with Peyton. I groaned to myself, pulling the covers off of me and going over to wake up Brooke. I couldn't blame her for not wanting to go to school- she had just lost her boyfriend and her best friend in less than a week, but as long as we were living under the same roof she was going to get an education. I walked over to her bed and grabbed the covers, beginning a sort of tug of war between Brooke and me over them.

"Haley leave me alone" She whined, and I smiled, feeling that her speaking was good progress. I let go of the covers temporarily, but slid them to the side to join her in her bed before she could wrap herself up in them again. She attempted to roll away from me, but I grabbed her and spun her back towards me.

"Brooke, come on. You have to go to school. I know you're heartbroken and exhausted but you don't want to be stuck in Tree Hill next year because you didn't go to school, right?" I proposed, though I knew logic probably wouldn't do me all that much good.  
"I can't face him" She admitted, burying her head in her pillow. I wrapped my arms around her, stroking her hair absentmindedly, glad I set my alarm clock half an hour early last night for this exact reason.

"Yes, you can. You can tell him what happened in Savannah. I guarantee you he'll give you another chance. He loves you" I explained, hoping I was right. Lucas had seemed crushed after Brooke broke things off; I could only assume that he would take her back in a heartbeat. It's not like he hadn't made his fair share of mistakes in their relationship. Brooke simply groaned, shaking her head. "You don't have to talk to him today, if you don't want to. But you do have to come to school. I'm not letting you lay in bed and brood all day" I demanded, and she sighed in response. I took this as her surrender, got up and took the covers with me. I grabbed a pair of jeans and a tee shirt from my box of clothes that sat pathetically by my bed before looking over my shoulder to see Brooke finally getting out of bed.

"You go get changed in the bathroom. I don't trust you not to fall back asleep if I leave you here" I stated. She simply smiled and laughed. I didn't quite understand her reaction, but figured it was a good thing. She walked over to me on her way out of the room and hugged me.

"Thanks for being an incredible friend, Haley. Even though I kind of hate you for making me go to school, you care about me and I can't thank you enough for that" She stated, before breaking our awkward embrace and leave the room. I couldn't come up with the words to reply quick enough, because I was kind of shocked with what she had said. I didn't think I'd ever felt more important than Brooke's friendship made me feel. Like she was depending on a good friend and I was there for her. Like my presence had actually made a positive difference in her life. It was like when someone I was tutoring had a breakthrough and understood it; but better. It was Brooke Davis admitting that she had needed help, admitting that she had never felt truly cared for, and thanking me all in one sentence. It was incredible.

I hid behind the pole, looking around it to see when Nathan was coming. I needed to jump out and fall into him at just the right time so that it didn't look completely staged and I would get to talk to him. As he approached I came out from behind where I was standing and "accidently" banged into him.

"Oh, I'm so sorry!" I exclaimed, and then looked up, pretending to be surprised to see him. "Nathan! Funny meeting you here" I added, smiling with my success and walking next to him.

"Yeah" He replied, a bit dull. Damn, I knew this wasn't a good idea. Why would he want to talk to me? But I so badly needed to talk to him, to be with him; I just needed him in any and all ways. But before I could awkwardly ditch, he spoke up.

"So, um, maybe we could go to dinner one day and catch up, you know? Been a while" He explained. My whole face lit up in excitement.  
"Yeah, I'd love to!" I exclaimed. Anything to finally get closer to Nathan! Did this mean we were getting back together? Was it a date, or just us hanging out as friends? Does this mean he's considering taking me back, or is it going to be his way of telling me it's over? Oh no, this could be bad too!

"Don't get too excited, it's not a date, and I'm not promising you anything. I just think we should talk in a non-public place" He explained. My face fell slightly, but I told myself to be grateful. I was very lucky that Nathan was willing to even talk to me! I had no reason to be upset. He probably wasn't going to ask for me to sign annulment papers, so that's good. Maybe, if I played my cards right, he would think about taking me back. That's a pretty good deal, right? "Oh, and by the way" He stated, before we got to the intersection where we had to split to get to our separate classes. "Next time you want to talk to me, just come out and do it, don't pretend to fall into me" He added. I blushed and my eyes widened. Was I really that obvious?! Before I could reply, he walked off towards A building. That went better than I possibly could've hoped! He was giving me an opportunity to show him how much I wanted to be with him; an opportunity I was going to seize in every way possible. He needed to know that I wasn't going anywhere anytime soon. I smiled, honestly, before turning around and walking towards my next class. I found that I couldn't wait to tell Brooke, and hoped maybe it would lift her spirits and her confidence in men once I did so.

"Oh my God, Haley, you have to wear this! It will look so incredible on you!" Brooke exclaimed, pulling a loose, sheer, tunic, a pair of leggings and a belt out of her closet. I simply laughed at her energy level and her expectation that I was going to wear her clothes on my non-date with my sort of husband.

"Brooke, I'm not wearing your clothes. If you insist on picking out my outfit, can you at least use my clothes?" I asked, kind of wary. If I wore Brooke's clothes and used Brooke as my sort of stylist, Nathan would surely notice. I didn't want him thinking I was trying too hard to impress him. Would that turn him off, or would that be good? Maybe he wants me to work hard to impress him.

"Why not? You have to show off your gorgeous body, Hales, and no offense, but your clothes do not do that. I wouldn't even know you had a gorgeous body if I didn't live with you! Now, of course Nathan knows this, but we must remind him. It can't hurt" She explained. I simply laughed and shook my head. That's just Brooke being Brooke.

"But I don't want him to think I'm trying too hard" I admitted. She simply turned around to look at me, an eyebrow raised.

"Yes, you do. Now go put this on" She demanded. I stayed put in my spot, not moving to take the outfit from her. "Come on, at least try it? If you hate it, you don't have to wear it!" She insisted. I gave in, slightly annoyed, and grabbed the outfit from her before heading off to get changed. There was no way I was leaving the house in this.

Well, on the up side, I'm completely covered. I ended up wearing Brooke's outfit that she chose for me, and I'm now looking in the mirror trying to convince myself of why it's appropriate even though it makes me very uncomfortable. I was wearing healed boots, fitted leggings, the sheer tunic and the belt, and some bracelets. Brooke had also insisted on doing my makeup, which I hesitantly agreed to. Brooke did know how to do makeup way better than I did anyway. She ended up giving me a smokey eye that made me actually look better than I thought I would. Though it was way dressy for me, I was trying to convince myself that I didn't look like I was trying too hard. And I had to admit, the thick belt did highlight my waistline well and the leggings and heeled boots did wonders for my legs. I sighed, feeling a bit more comfortable with how Brooke had dressed me.

"You look so incredible!" Brooke squealed, seemingly very proud of herself. I decided I would be nice and grateful, because, well, it was very nice of Brooke to spend her afternoon getting me ready for the non-date.

"Thanks, Brooke" I replied genuinely, and we hugged. She smiled in return, before snapping back into demanding Brooke mode.

"First of all, don't spill anything on the top. Secondly, don't cry because your make up will go all down your face and you'll look horrendous. Other than that, have fun!" She exclaimed, and I laughed in return. At that moment, I heard the doorbell ring, and my heart began to beat faster in response.  
"Oh my god, is it really seven already?! Brooke, I'm not ready! I, I need to um, okay, where's my lip gloss? Oh my god, are you sure I look okay? I don't look like I'm trying too hard, right? I don't look slutty? Do the boots make me look like a hooker?!" I exclaimed, all the questions coming rambling out of my mouth as Brooke laughed and held out the tube of lip gloss.

"Hales" She stated, grabbing my shoulders and focusing my attention onto her. "You look absolutely gorgeous. Here's your lip gloss. Yes, it's seven, but you are totally ready. You don't look slutty or like a hooker. You look like a gorgeous young women who's husband is going to be drooling over her all night. Now go enjoy yourself! Be calm and don't ramble. Or spill on the shirt or cry. Okay?" She asked, and I nodded, terrified but somewhat less panicky after Brooke's pep talk. She smiled, taking her hands off my shoulders and motioning for me to leave the room after handing me my purse, dropping the lip gloss inside of it. I walked over to the door, rubbing my sweaty palms on Brooke's leggings before opening the door to see Nathan standing there in jeans and a fitted tee shirt. His eyebrows raised as he shamelessly checked me out, and I tried to discreetly look at him as well. Thank you, Brooke Davis.  
"You ready to go?" I ask after a moment, because it was getting fairly uncomfortable the way he was looking at me. Not that he hadn't looked at me like that before, but it had been so long and the memories that look was bringing back just weren't memories I could ever bear remembering. He nodded, moving over so that I could walk outside and close the door behind me.

"Tell me everything!" Brooke gushed when I walked in the door. I rested against the wall, pulled off the heeled boots and climbed onto the couch next to Brooke.

"It was fun and kind of awkward. We walked around a bit, talked about random shit and just pretended we were strangers. It was weird. But, it was nice to get to talk to him. He said we should hang out again, so I guess that's good news. He didn't mention our marriage at all or Chris. I didn't want to bring it up so it just kind of stayed avoided" I explained, reminiscing about the night. There had been a ridiculous amount of sexual tension between us, because he had looked incredible in that tight shirt and those jeans he wore are my favorite on him because of how great his ass looks in them. I guess the outfit Brooke gave me did the job, because I had caught him staring at me multiple times during the night. He would awkwardly turn away like he hadn't just been caught staring at me and I'd pretend I hadn't just caught him staring. We were like horny teenagers on our first date.

"Did he kiss you goodnight?" She asked nosily. I shook my head feverishly.

"No, nothing like that. We just hung out like friends. It was nice just to be close to him. I think he's going to give me another chance if it goes well when we hang out again. It's like starting over, you know? It felt like a first date" I explained. She nodded, seemingly somewhat satisfied with my answer.

"I don't know how he resisted you in that outfit" She remarked. "I thought he would have had you pinned against a wall at some point in time during the night" She added. I laughed, knowing the chances of that occurring were certainly minimal. I didn't exactly have the greatest sex appeal, even in Brooke Davis' clothes.

"No, no. It wasn't like that" I replied, deciding to leave out the sexual tension that haunted us the entire night.

"Well, there had to be some tension between you guys!" She exclaimed. I laughed at how nosy she was being, but knew I should have expected as much from Brooke.

"Yeah, there was, but we didn't kiss or anything. It was like a first date, I told you" I explained. She nodded, still looking a bit unsatisfied, but seemingly sensing my hesitancy towards discussing the tension between Nathan and me. Then I remembered the exciting news I had for her.

"Oh, guess what! I have got great news for you!" I exclaimed, excited to stop talking about my relationship and start talking about hers.

"What is it?" She asked hesitantly.

"Nathan said that Lucas told him that he would do anything to get you back, and convinced Nathan to give me another shot. He wants you, Brooke! He loves you! I know you don't want to, I know that you're embarrassed, but all you have to do is tell him that you want him too and you guys can finally be together!" I exclaimed, very excited. I had been overly thrilled when Nathan had mentioned why he finally agreed to hang out with me, even just as friends. Brooke looked somewhat hesitant when I told her this, but I could see in her eyes that she was excited.

"I don't know.." She replied, trailing off and looking down. It was so weird to see Brooke's mood switch like this; where she went from bold and energetic to vulnerable and broody within seconds.

"Brooke, come on. You love him and he loves you. Give him another chance and he'll gladly give you one. I get it if you still want to wait longer, but eventually he's going to give up hope that you're ever coming back" I told her. She nodded, but I wasn't quite sure that she was listening.

"I'll think about it" She agreed, and I beamed. That was definitely improvement. I could only hope that before I knew it, my best friends could be together, finally. And then maybe, just maybe, Nathan would commit to giving me another chance. I know I screwed up, but I just wanted him so badly. I needed him in my life. I wasn't the same person without him. I no longer knew how to live my life without him there.


	10. Chapter 10

Chapter 10

**Authors Note****: Hey y'all! What's up?! I'm here to drop a slight bomb- this. is. the. final. chapter. I'm probably going to write an Epilogue, because I don't really want to end it this way, and I like to tie my loose ends. So please, tell me what you think! Would you like your loose ends tied?**

Haley's POV

"Have you spoken to Lucas yet?" I inquired, even though I knew he hadn't. I had just gone out to breakfast with Lucas this morning, and he had said nothing about Brooke or even about himself. Actually, he spent the whole time going on and on about my lack of a relationship with Nathan and how things hadn't progressed at all with us since our non date last week. Apparently, things hadn't progressed on the Brooke and Lucas forefront either.

"Yeah we're in the same English class, remember?" She replied, acting all nonchalant as she took the seat next to me on the couch. She dropped a bowl of popcorn in my lap and looked up at me, all innocent. "Would you like some popcorn?" She asks, and I shook my head, not letting her change the subject. Nathan didn't seem like he wanted to give me another chance, so I had to convince Brooke to stop being so embarrassed and proud and give Lucas one. At least one of us had to be doing well in the love life department.

"No, I would not, and you know what I'm talking about! Have you told him you're sorry and that you want to get back together with him? That you love him?" I asked, straight forward, not really in the mood to play cryptic games with Brooke at the moment. She sighed, laying back against the couch.  
"No" She whispered in reply. Obviously not, Brooke.

"Are you going to?" I asked, again knowing the answer. Of course she would say she was going to, but she needed to actually do it. Now. Or she'll never end up doing it! "You know, Brooke, the longer you wait, the harder it's going to get" I added, knowing that she just needed a little push and a little reassuring. It was just Lucas, and honestly, she had absolutely nothing to be afraid of.

"Haley, I will, just put the movie on. I don't want to talk about it" She snapped back at me. I was extremely mad and frustrated with her, but I knew that us getting into a fight over this wasn't worth it. I could just drop the subject and leave her to deal with her own life, but then I remembered Nathan once again. I wished someone would push him to tell me he's ready for us to have another chance. So I would need to be that person for Brooke, so that my best friend wouldn't have to go through the same thing I was currently going through. So that somebody in Tree Hill could be happy for once in their lives.

"No, Brooke, seriously. We have to talk about this. Are you going to go to his house after school? Are you going to ask him to come out with you and talk to him then? When will you do it? Tomorrow, next week?" I asked. "You need to have a plan and commit to it, otherwise you're just going to string it along and keep saying 'someday' until he moves on" I pushed, willing to accept the consequences if Brooke decided to throw the bowl of popcorn, currently in her hands, at me.

"Why do you care so much?" She asked, kind of snippy but not as much so as I was expecting.  
"Because you're one of my best friends, Brooke! That's why!" I exclaimed, and it was mostly true. But I could see that she wasn't buying it. She knew I had to have something besides my want for her to be happy invested in this.

"Hales..." She replied, and I could tell she was watching my facial expression, fishing around for any clues as to why I was pushing her like this on the Lucas situation.

"Maybe I just wish someone would help convince Nathan to give me another chance" I admitted quietly, and Brooke's face fell into one of pity. She crawled over to me and held me in a hug.

"You know what, Hales? You're right. You deserve for Nathan to give you another chance. He loves you, you love him, and he's being stubborn. It's stupid. I realize that. But I don't know if I can not be stubborn" She explained, and I simply nodded. "That's a hard thing for people like Nathan and me to do. It used to seem like all we had was our pride and our confidence, and then you and Lucas came along" She added, and I knew it sort of made sense but then it just didn't make sense at all.  
"You love him, Brooke. He can make you happy. He's not going to turn you down. You need to let him all the way in if you want him to let you all the way in" I explained, and I heard her sigh from beside me.

"I know, Hales. I know. I'm going to do it" She replied, but I wasn't quite sure that I believed her. I shook the thoughts and seriousness from my head. This was Brooke and Lucas' lives. Not mine and Nathan's. I knew that I needed to not be so invested in this. I needed to focus on my own life.

"I'm sorry for being so snippy with you. I just wish he would give me another chance. I love him so much" I explained, and Brooke nodded, holding me closer to her.

Lucas' POV

I was panting as I walked over to the Rivercourt bleachers and put the ball down. I sat down for a moment and grabbed my water bottle, gulping from it. My brows furrowed when I saw a female figure walking towards me; at first I assumed it to be Haley, but then I realized that her hair was too dark and finally realized it had to be Brooke. But why would Brooke be here?! Besides the random 'hi' in the hallway or friendly glance, Brooke has been completely avoiding me since the entire Peyton fiasco and since she broke up with me. Haley told me that she went after Peyton in Savannah and she wouldn't come home with her. I was quite surprised by this, because Brooke's friendship used to be the most important thing to Peyton. And Brooke did tell me that the reason we couldn't be together was Peyton. I couldn't be more angry with the curly haired blonde. She ripped Brooke and me apart and then ran away!

I tried to pull myself together a bit, putting the water bottle down and straightening out my tee shirt. I was about to get up when Brooke silently sat down next to me, her hands in her lap and seemingly lost in her own mind. I didn't know what to say; would it be super lame to just say 'Hey, Brooke, what's up'? Maybe I should just stay silent and let her start the conversation. She did just come over here and sit next to me without as much as a word.  
"I'm sorry" She said, and I looked over at her, confused. Why was she sorry? Because she was avoiding me, or because she broke up with me? No, that's too good to be true. "I was stupid, I was wrong, and I just let my stubbornness and my pride get in the way of telling you sooner" She explained, and I still wasn't completely positive what she was talking about. I was hoping, no, praying, that she was apologizing for breaking up with me over Peyton, but I didn't want to assume anything. I decided to just stay quiet until she spoke again and hope she planned on elaborating.

"So, are you going to say anything or just leave me hanging?" Brooke asked after a moment of awkward, tension filled silence.

"Are we talking about us breaking up?" I asked quietly, feeling stupid but also wanting to make sure. Brooke began to look extremely irritated, and she began to get up off of the bleachers. I reached out and grabbed her arm, holding her from proceeding to walk away. She turned towards me, and shook her head in frustration.

"OF COURSE I'm talking about us breaking up! What else have I done to you lately?!" She screamed, and I felt horrible for pissing her off like this. She seemed so willing to be vulnerable just a few minutes ago.

"Okay, okay, I'm sorry! I just thought that was too good to be true. You don't have to apologize, Brooke! I know how much Peyton means to you" I explained, not sure why she was being so strange about this.

"I was wrong to break up with you, okay?! I LOVE YOU, Lucas! I want to be with you! That's what I'm saying! Do you need me to be any more clear?!" She yelled, and I just didn't know what to do. So I followed my gut, grabbed her by her waist and pressed her lips to mine. There was no way in hell she was walking away now. The kiss was hungry and harsh, angry and frustrated, but it was right. I'd missed being with her so much. I'd missed her yelling to me, I'd missed her lips and her eyes, I'd missed her craziness and her hunger for adventure. I just couldn't believe that she actually wanted to be with me. I felt her anger slipping into passion as she wrapped her arms around my neck and softened the pressure with which she kissed me.

"I love you too" I told her when we broke away, panting, a moment later. She bit her lip, looked down, and I tilted her chin up. "Did you hear that, Brooke Davis? I love you, I'm in love with you, and I want to be with you too. Will you be my girlfriend, Brooke Penelope Davis?" I asked, deciding to go all middle name on her. She laughed and looked me in the eyes, smiling.

"Of course I will, Lucas Eugene Scott" She replied, and I groaned at the middle name, remembering when Haley had accidently revealed it to the class.

"I'm going to kill Haley for that one" I replied. She simply laughed.

"Well, Haley's the one that convinced me to swallow my pride and come talk to you" She admitted, and I smiled, satisfied. I kissed Brooke's forehead, thankful for Haley's pushing, but as always, appreciating Brooke for her stubbornness, not despite it. It was just part of her personality; it was part of the never ending list of things I loved about Brooke Penelope Davis.

Haley's POV

It had already been a full week since Brooke and Lucas finally became Brucas again, but Brooke was still dancing around the house on cloud nine. I was happy for her, truly, but I was starting to get extremely frustrated. I pushed Brooke to give Lucas another chance so that they could be happy, thinking it would make me feel better, when all it did was make me extremely jealous. They were walking around school hand in hand, he was over almost every afternoon after cheerleading and basketball, and I even caught them making out on the couch on more than one occasion. And it's only been a week!

Brooke whistled frustratingly when she walked into the room, stopping when she saw me rolled up in the fetal position on the couch.

"Hales? What's wrong?" She asked. I sighed, not wanting to tarnish her ridiculously good mood with my frustration and longing for my husband. She took my silence as an answer and then continued to speak. "I have an idea that I think is going to really perk you up" She explained, walking over to me on the couch and plopping down next to me.

"Yeah?" I replied, not interested and barely listening. I returned to counting the number of squares on the tile in the kitchen (the tile that I had very well committed to memory), ignoring Brooke completely.

"Well, there's a home game tomorrow and we're cheering and the boys are playing, so, I figured you and Nathan could join me and Lucas for dinner afterwards" She explained, getting my attention.

"No" I replied automatically.

"Why not? Aren't you the one that keeps saying to swallow your pride?" She asked, and I groaned at the way she was twisting my words and using them against me.

"He's going to think I put you two up to this! There's no way in hell he'll go for that!" I exclaimed, not understanding how she couldn't see that. Nathan would be pissed as hell with me the moment he figured it out!

"Who says he's going to think it was your idea? Luke'll tell him it was my idea. And it doesn't have to be like a double date necessarily" Brooke explained. Yeah, right, Brooke.

"Yeah, so when you two are sucking face across the booth, what am I supposed to do?! This is going to be so ridiculously awkward Brooke!" I exclaimed, but she wasn't having it.

"Whatever you say, Hales. Whatever you do, don't bring a change of clothes to the game. You'll look irresistible in that cheerleading uniform. Oh, this will be so much fun!" She exclaimed, and I shook my head, getting up to take a shower and clear my head.

For the first time since before the tour, things weren't ridiculously awkward between Nathan and me. Brooke and Lucas were making out in front of us and he was laughing, so I laughed with him. We then just started chatting about the game and school and it was natural and easy and it was like he wasn't trying to put his guard up any more. It was really, really nice. Granted, we hadn't spoken at all about our relationship (and lack thereof), but it was just so nice to spend time with him. I was smiling brighter and my heart felt less heavy. I felt like a schoolgirl who had a huge crush on this super popular boy, a boy who was finally giving her the time of day. Then I realized that I am the schoolgirl, but I'm actually head over heels in love with the popular boy. Eventually, the check came, and Nathan offered to pay, citing that he had a great time as his reason. I got up to leave, and Brooke broke away from Lucas and joined me. I sighed when Nathan didn't get up from next to me at first, but then realized he was having some sort of confrontation with Lucas. I was hoping that he wasn't telling Luke off for making out with Brooke and leaving him to speak with me. I was hoping that maybe Luke was doing with Nathan what I'd done with Brooke; pushed him to swallow his pride. I followed Brooke outside of the pizza place and I jumped when I heard her scream. I looked up, but it was so dark out that I was having trouble figuring out what she was looking at. I finally caught her line of sight, just in time to see long, blonde curls running away from behind a tree by where we had all been sitting at a booth just moments ago.

"Was that just..?" I started, not even wanting to say it in case Brooke didn't say the same thing.

"Peyton?" She asked, and I nodded, trying to catch my breath, noticing for the first time that seeing her, apparently watching us have dinner, after doing everything she did, had taken my breath away.  
What the hell was she doing here?!

**Please tell me what you think! I'd love to hear from you! So finally, Brucas is back! And it seems like Naley is headed down a good path, too! Next week is the Epilogue, and then I'm afraid I'll be moving on! :( I've really enjoyed writing this story, and I'll insert all my cheesy comments and thank you's in my Epilogue! :P**


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